Emiya VIII

He was in a field. It was…the same field as the one in dreams. Long grassy knolls dotted the horizon, filled with long and short grasses. He could see trees around topping the rises, and from here, he could see that they were dotted with bright, red round fruit. Even in the distance, he could hear her, laughing, free as she ever would be. The back part of him screamed to start moving, to find her, and to seek her out.

But…he didn't, because it wasn't exactly like his dreams. Before this, it had always been the brightest part of the day. Tonight, the whole horizon was illuminated in thousands upon thousands of stars. Entire galaxies seemed to cover the sky in lacteal clouds. Those milky strands interrupted by dots or orange and purple and blue.

The field around him was different as well. The long grass seemed to be topped with white petals that shone as brightly and beautifully as the stars above them. The apple trees on the hills were also full not of green leaves but white petals. And above the trees were towers of ivory and silver and gold, climbing high into the sky. It was like nothing he had ever seen.

"Whe-"

"It is good to see you awake my dear Nanashi."

He looked to his right, following the girl's voice, and saw a Japanese teenager. At least, that was what he could guess. She was speaking Japanese, not the weird amalgam of language that he somehow had translated to him from when he was walking about this strange plane. Secondly…well, she was quite clearly a teenage girl, with long brown hair nearly to the back of her neck. She was wearing a long white dress, with a frankly obscenely large red bow tied to it at the small of her back, all the way to her ankles, which lead to completely bare feet. She turned her head to the side, big brown eyes staring at her while she had a small frown across her lips, "What is troubling you Nanashi?

"What," he stammered, staring into the deep hazel of both her hair and eyes, "what's going on?" he looked around, taking in everything around him. The last he remembered, he'd been, "Where are the burning buildings, the-"

"That was an illusion," the girl continued, her eyes never blinking, "Your body has been poisoned with a dangerous set of drugs," Emiya blinked, before remembering the strange numbness on his body from the smoke, and then even more remember the feeling of the hollow dart hitting his shoulder, "Against the body of a Heroic Spirit it would not have succeeded in pulling the wool over your eyes. But in your current state, a human body…" she bent her head, "On some level, it was more a surprise that the amount of potions and sedatives did not kill you."

"Damnit," he cursed. He squeezed his hand together in frustration, before shouting louder, "Damnit! I can't believe I let myself be taken in like that!"

"As I said," the girl continued, "You were in constant battle, with how little mana in your system it is not surprising that your bod-"

"That's not what I'm mad about," he snapped, the girl pausing and saying nothing, allowing him to continue, "I'm mad because I knew it was an illusion," he snapped his finger, "I knew the second I saw Sakura that it couldn't be real. It was too powerful a spell to have me run into her, and it," he paused and looked down, "And I knew it wasn't real because I've seen it before…exactly before…in my nightmares."

"It was a poison meant to attack your subconscious," the girl nodded in understanding, "It brought out your worst fears took advantage of your guilt," she paused, "Though I think you may have had a more vivid nightmare because of the amount of the stuff in you."

"That might have explained why I was able to feel Rin's blood flowing down my hand," Emiya looked down, "God damn it, I should have known, I should have realized that if they were casting an illusion they could affect my sense of touch as well as my sight," he groaned, "God damn it."

"Yes, knowing your relationship with Tohasaka, it would make sense that would cause you to lose your composure," the girl then stopped nodding, before looking at Emiya again, "Though that still wasn't what actually caused your collapse, so please tell me what happened after that," Emiya just stared, "I know you have questions, but I need to know what happened before I can try and figure out the best course of action to treat the issue."

"What are you?" Emiya snapped, a bit peeved at the girl, "Some kind of psychologist?"

"A better term might be friend," the girl said simply. Emiya was about to ask what made her think she was his friend, but the flat look on her face was enough to say that snarking wouldn't actually get him anywhere. He then closed his eyes, before feeling his skin crawl.

"I saw all of them," the girl twisted her head to the side again, "I saw every single innocent person I killed, the scientists, the mages, the politicians," when he saw her about to open her mouth, "Just because they were in politics doesn't mean they deserve to die," he growled, before he sighed, "All of them, asking why," he shook his head, "But, it was when I saw Artoria. I saw her, and I saw the life she built, gone," he sighed, "and she blamed me, she had lost her children and her husband, and it was all my fault."

"...You really have a problem with guilt, don't you my dear Nanashi?" Hakuno said.

"Why do you keep calling me that?" he growled, ""Nameless?" I have a name," he remembered a hand reaching through ashes and burnt wood, "Not that I deserve the name, but I do have one. And you called me "My Dear" and you called me friend? We've never met."

"Yes I have," she stated, "I can certainly tell you I have known a version of you personally," Emiya could see the vaguest hint of a blush underneath her eyes, "But no, this you and this me would never have had the chance to meet. Your Proper Human History did not have a Moon Cell, so there was no way that you and I could have met."

"Moon Cell?" Emiya felt his body flinch, and as subtly as he could, attempted to take a fighting stance. The Moon Cell. A quirk of some timelines, a massive vein of photonic crystals that formed a supercomputer that acted as a secondary origin of magic similar to the root. He'd only encountered it himself while at Chaldea, "You wouldn't happen to be working for BB would you?"

BB, a rogue AI with the personality of an impish teenage girl. She'd caused nothing but havoc for RItsuka and Chaldea at large, until Martha had managed to get her hands around the AI's neck. Which had been unfortunately comfortable for Emiya, considering that BB had actually been based, physically and emotionally, on Matou Sakura. That Sakura's "Twin's" head being used to dent bulkhead was not the worst injury he'd seen for her was actually rather upsetting now that he thought about it.

But what upset him more was the thought of him being saved by BB. She was a little devil, and if she was the one saving him, then it might be better if he killed himself right now. He wasn't about to owe something to BB if it meant possibly helping BB on her quest to get together with her "Senpai". Hell, if for no other reason than he was sure he could end his life in a more painless way than whatever Jeannette would come up with.

"Oh, no," the girl said, and Emiya sighed at the bluntness of her statement, "She works for me," Emiya immediately froze up, while she pressed a finger to her cheek, "Well, worked for me," she shook her head, "It's been a very long time since I've been on Moon Cell. Ascending to a fourth dimensional existence has impaired my ability to understand how long parts of my life have been in linear time, so I can't tell you exactly how long, but it has been very long since I last saw BB," she then paused, and for the first time, EMiya could see emotion, as he could see a small bead of sweat slope down along the girl's right temple, "I…hope she has not misbehaved while I have been…indisposed."

Emiya felt almost like pushing it, because something in him could almost imagine how this girl's negligence might have been causing Chaldea problems, but let it slide. He had her off balance, he might as well press her, "Who are you?" he asked, "What is going on, and why have you brought me to this place?"

"I am Hakuno, once Kishinami Hakuno," Emiya nodded, glad he could at last attach a name to this girl, "I am currently one of the guardians of the space beyond space, the times outside of time, a fourth dimensional traveler," she then again showed emotion, though this time it was a small flick upward of her mouth into a smile, "I was also once the winner of the Moon Holy Grail War," she reached out, and touched his chest with her hand, "With my dear Nanashi."

"I'm not him," Emiya said firmly. This happened sometimes, Dantes falling to his knees before Nightingale a particularly painful example, that someone from one time would mistake a doppelganger for the one they cared for. If this girl thought Emiya had any memories of being her servant, he needed to kill that train of thought quick. Keep this is as impersonal as possible.

"I know," she nodded, "It…it is not pleasant, but I know you are not my dear," she then pulled her hand back, "As for what is going on, after you were drugged, you were taken to some kind of summoning ritual. The first stage of the ritual caused a seam to appear in the barrier of this world, and it was determined that now was the time to reach out to contact you so we can keep the operation on this plane of existence proceeding as necessary."

"Determined," Emiya blinked, before cursing, "Damn it, I let myself be turned into a sacrifice," he paused, "For a summoning ritual," he then growled, "Of all the fucking stupidest things I've done, this has to be pretty high up there. I've put everyone in dan-"

"We can discuss your missteps later," Hakuno said, cutting him off, cheeks puffed out slightly, "You did not allow me to finish my explanations of the current situation. We must keep his conversation brisk," she snapped her finger, "Now, as to why I brought you here," she looked around, "I am only able to travel so far as a guardian of space between spaces, so I was unable to manifest on the plane itself. To do so would only cause issues that might disrupt and possibly distend the plane in a dangerous manner," she held her arm out, "I was able to call you soul here, to the Reverse Side, to have a discussion about how to disrupt the current ritual," she then looked down, "Though…I do not know how much time I have left before I have to send you out, or else we will lose our chance to save you and stop the summoning."

Emiya took in a breath, before sighing, "Fine," he sighed. That was the best explanation he had, and…well, at least it explained a few things. So this was the Reverse side of the world. He'd heard about it when discussing some magical concepts with Luvia one time while he'd been at the Clocktower. She'd been very open to helping him, far more than one would expect for one of the mages of such an illustrious family. He'd of course repaid her by hurting her, just like all the others, "I'll stop the ritual."

"I had no doubt you would."

"I don't have any care about whether I live or die," he actually considered the second the far better option after…well, everything, "But if this keeps Ritsuka and the others from getting hurt from my own stupidity, then that's more than enough," he looked at the girl, whose eyes were still impossibly wide and seeming to peer directly into his soul, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"...Nanashi," she finally said, "You don't need to beat yourself up too badly about the drugging. It was suboptimal, but with the amount of drugs within you and the lack of mana, it was highly likely that you would have collapsed from exhaustion if not the illusions themselves."

"There is no need to try and soothe my ego," Emiya said, "I managed to cock everything up again. I went and got trapped and drugged, and gave up because of a few very obvious illusions. I'm a failure now as I always have been-"

"Leave me alone!"

"And always will be," he said. He closed his eyes, and tried to bury the memories. Find a hole in the back of his mind, dig as deep a pit as he could, and stuff all of this deep down in there. Anything else would jeopardize the mission more than he'd already managed to.

"That," Hakuno said, "Is deeply unhealthy."

"It's for the best," he rubbed the back of his head, "Maybe I'll get lucky, after stopping this ritual, and I'll die of a heart attack," he shook his head, "I mean, if I had died of that after the drugs got in my system, then you'd never have needed to come here, and pull all this metaphysical shit just to pull my dumbass out of the fire," he looked over the Elysium around him.

"I was happy to do so," Hakuno's voice had changed. There was something stern their now where before even when she was showing emotion, she'd been completely flat, "You are precious to me Nanashi, I would have done far more than simply arrive on the Reverse World if it meant helping you out of a dangerous situation."

"And that's half the problem," he looked her in the eye, "People like you, really need to stop giving a shit about me."

"People like m-"

"Good people," he threw his arms out, "Kind people, caring people," Hakuno stayed quiet, "I've been surrounded by some of the best people you could ever ask for. Sakura was the sweetest, kindest girl you could meet, despite everything her family did to her. Rin is the most brilliant woman I've ever met, and I don't think there was anything on Earth she wouldn't do for people she cared about," he shook his head at the memories of the Tohsaka sisters, "And Artoria…she tried," he could feel his eyes welling up, "She tried so hard in her life, she tried so, so hard, and everytime the world took all her effort and her caring and her honor and kicked her," he shook his head, "And all she would do, after getting knocked down, was push herself back to her feet, and try again," he then let loose a feral growl, "And I made each of their lives worse just by existing. Every single one of them would be better off if Emiya Shirou had never been born."

Hakuno reached out, and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It wasn't just them," Emiya did his best to choke back his tears, "Taiga was put in so many dangerous situations because of me. I completely blew my chance with Luvia despite all the time she gave to me. Ciel was investigated by the church for fraternizing with a rogue mage. Dad," he hacked out a bitter laugh, "God, what must he think of me. A boy he devoted the last years of his life to, only to see him fail in a more spectacular way than he could have imagined. I kept him away from his real daughter. God, and Illya. She certainly would be better off if the fool had burned."

"And then there is Ristuka, and the rest of the team," he waved his hand around, "I got captured by a bunch of mystic neanderthal's using the most obvious illusions in the book, and I'm about to be sacrificed to summon another enemy servant. That's not even counting how I went and let Arash die, failing my mission at the first hurdle I got to. I thought it as different in Chaldea, but nope, turns out, without Solomon out there to keep an eye on me, I just keep making a mess of everything."

"So," Emiya asked, "What did Nanashi do to you? He had to have failed you somehow," he watched as the girl just stared thoughtfully at him. He then laughed, "though, if I had to guess, it was inspiring you to follow the same failed path."

"Pardon?"

"Guardian of the space between spaces," he snorted, "I ended up convincing you to make a contract with Alaya then. I don't think I'd ever be stupid enough to actually tell you being a Counter Guardian, but maybe I did some stupid "heroic" act, and that "Inspired" you to-"

SMACK

"OW!"

"You really need to stop thinking the world revolves around you," Hakuno's right hand was back at her side after having struck his cheek. She raised her hand to her chin, and then wondered aloud, "Was Nanashi ever like this? I don't remember him being this self-absorbed."

"I'm telling the truth," Emiya bit back. Hakuno seemed to raise her hand to strike him again, and Emiya jumped back slightly, "All I do is hurt people. I'm basically a magnet for misery, and everyone who gets too close ends up getting hurt," he growled, "No matter how much I try and keep people away, they just get close, and it gets them hurt."

"Is it wrong that they care?"

"It is if it only gets them hurt."

"From my personal experience," Hakuno smiled up at him, or at least tried to, it didn't seem to match her normal features, "That is never all getting close to you does, my dear."

"Well, then the shoe just hasn't dropped on you yet," Hakuno slowly raised her palm once more to slap him, but he continued, "It can take a while to happen. I thought for a bit that it was only in the Holy Grail Wars that I was such a failure," he then looked out around him, "In Chaldea, it really did feel like I'd…I'd found my place," he felt his jaw tighten, "But this mission, it's just been me failing over and over again. Arash is dead, Ritsuka nearly died, and," he stared, "And Artoria is happy, but I'm coming to ruin it again."

"From the few times I've met Artoria," Hakuno stared him directly in the eye, "If she knew that she was being kept from her oath, she'd want you to wake her up," she turned her head, "Even if she was happy."

"Yes," Emiya nodded, "If Saber ever heard about how she was living, she'd demand that I immediately do everything in my power to ensure she would wake up and return to her duty as a Servant of Chaldea," he stopped, "But I know that would only make things worse," he smiles, "When I was connecting with her, to create Avalon…and in my dream from her view," he smiled, "She was so happy. And," he nearly choked, but he finally got out, "And I'm going to ruin it for her. I'm going to take it all away from her," he stopped, and then added the worst part of all, "And when I've finished smashing her world apart, she's going to say "Thank You"."

"You…have been keeping this to yourself, haven't you?" Emiya looked at her. She was back to rubbing her chin, "Clearly, it's not just that you are merely a self-absorbed fool," for some reason, even if he agreed with that description, he felt a vein on his temple bulge, "your need to take ensure other's happiness and safety is combining with that to create a toxic loop, resulting in you wallowing in your own self loathing."

"It's only me noticing who I actually am," Emiya spoke up, "The fool thought he could save everyone in front of him. I know that's not possible."

"No it isn't," Hakuno nodded, "But you see-," she stopped. She then slowly raised a finger directly into the air, and Emiya got the distinct impression that she had just stumbled upon an idea. She then stopped, looked at him for a moment, before nodding to herself.

"What are you thinking?" he asked.

"I have just found the path to return you to your body," Hakuno said, while placing a hand beneath the tall grass of the field, "As well as a way to disrupt the ceremony and stop the enemy from controlling the Grand Assassin."

"Wait," Emiya felt his heart nearly stop, "Grand Assassin," when the girl nodded, his blood began to grow cold, "Then that means-"

"We can make sure that he won't be an issue for you," she said, before suddenly pulling up from the ground a monitor. Emiya blinked, the modern looking technology seeming out of place in this mystic place, "Now then," suddenly, a strange rune appeared on the screen, "If you see this rune," It looked something like a strange mix of an infinity symbol and a cross, "you must alter it. Break it even slightly, and that should get you through this."
"That," Emiya thought, "Seems rather simple, to stop something this dangerous."

"This is a very delicate system," Hakuno nodded, "But don't worry, just destroy that single rune, and the ritual will be disrupted," Emiya gave her a sideways glance. She looked up at him, and then, after a moment, puffed out her cheeks, "Do you really think that I would come here, across space and time, and then not tell you how to stop the evil ritual?"

"No," Emiya scoffed, "But I wouldn't put it past you to try and do something cute."

"Snrt," the girl shook her head, before smiling, and waving her hand, "If you say so," to her other side, a square light spread out from beneath the grass. From that lifted up a door frame, which slowly ascended above the ground, "You'll get where you need to go through this," she looked back, "This is the way to return your consciousness to your body."

Emiya was about to ask if she could just send him back, but the look on her face told him that trying to make that point would probably be futile. So he reached out and grabbed the door knob, and twisted it. He opened the door, and saw a veil of light covering the whole opening. He gave one last look back to the girl, who just began to wave cutely to him. He allowed himself a small smirk at Hakuno, and then returned the wave as he walked through.

"Goodbye Hakuno."

"See you around Nanashi."

Emiya knew the instant he landed on the other side of that door that he had not actually gotten back to his body.

After all, he doubted the Faceless Men were performing a ritual out in the middle of a forest at noon.

He also doubted, as the scaled creature raised its head, slit eyes staring down at him as it climbed at least two meters into the air, that the ritual would involve a giant, fifty foot long cobra. The snake spread its hood, a long fork tongue twisting right in front of Emiya's face. The slits in of the eyes began to narrow, and the creature opened its mouth slightly, showing the long fangs inside.

'Damnit,' Emiya tried to dip into his mana, but while he didn't feel pain, he couldn't project anything, 'How the hell do I end up in these situations?'

The cobra raised its head high, opening its mouth completely-

SHUNK

And then the head of the creature slammed to the side. Emiya immediately followed the movement on instinct, but he already knew it was a waste. He had it confirmed when he finally caught the beast. Its head was resting on a tree.

Or rather impaled to it. It's right eye had burst open, a massive wooden staff sticking out, the point likely connecting the head to the trunk. Its tongue continued to vibrate, as its tail began to thrash around at the sudden strike. Emiya jumped up, and landed on one of the other tree's branches. He placed his feet, and watched as the great serpent died. He then turned his head in the direction of where the long pike had come from, and he felt his jaw drop, as a dark skinned man with a bow in his left hand raised his right in a slight wave.

"Good to see you again my friend," Arash was laughing.

And then it was night. The stars were out, but instead of the water color canvas of before, it was the familiar set of stars he'd seen countless times. He looked over, and saw a small fire crackling next to him, and two birds, plucked of their feathers, cooking over it. There was the sound of rustling behind him, and he turned back, and saw Arash walking up behind him.

"Dinner almost ready?" the Persian laughed. Emiya nodded. Even at just a moment, he could tell it was ready. Arash smirked, reached out, and grabbed up the two sticks holding their meal. He handed one over to Emiya, and then raised it to his mouth, and took a full mouthful. For a moment, he sat there chewing, while Emiya felt his jaw drop, "Are you not hungry," he raised his own meat up, "The birds are good, and you have a long journey yet to walk."

"Did we just skip tim-"

"Yes," Arash laughed, "Yes we did," he then took another bite. Emiya blinked, while watching Arash continue to dig into his food, "Again, eat," he said through the mouthful, "You are low on mana."

Emiya blinked, before sighing, and raising the food, and taking a bite out the breast of the bird. He wished he had some time to season it, but considering everything, he should probably be grateful it didn't taste like some kind of eldritch squid. For the next moment, as they ate, Emiya just sat there, allowing the food to hit his stomach, and the generation of mana to resume. His limbs began to feel lighter, and his mind clearer. Finally, about halfway through, he stopped, and returned his attention to his companion.

"I'm…I'm Sorry,"

"Apology Accepted," Arash said, before looking down at the bird, "I know this isn't your best meal, but considering we only had a little salt for the meal-"

"Not about the fucking birds," Emiya sighed, and Arash looked at him quizzically. Arash wanted to tear out his hair, but instead, just placed a finger into Arash's chest, "I got you killed Arash," at that Arash slumped dramatically.

"I told you!" Arash said, pointing his own finger into Emiya's chest, "That everything that happened back in Ghis was my decision," he held up his bow, "It's always been my decision, to give my life for those I care about, it's why Stella is my Noble Phantasm," he then took a bite out of his bird, chewing it too quickly, "My legend is one of self sacrifice, and it is in my nature. There was never a chance that you could have stopped me from dying there, as the only way to reach my goal was to see to it that Grazdan the Great was sent to hell," he then smiled, "And that is exactly what I did."

"Always self-sacrificing bullshit," Emiya groaned, before taking another bite, "Noble idiots, the lot of you."

"Ah, don't sell yourself short friend," Arash was belly laughing, before placing the bones of his meal down and saying, "You yourself are too much like us to mock us for such things," Emiya only shook his head, "I mean nothing rude by saying this," he then shook his hands, "Though, I must say it is good to be alive again, even if only for a short while."

"Are you the same Arash?" he had thought that Ritsuka had been unable to resummon the Persian Archer, "Or maybe just a figment of my imagination?"

"I do not know," Arash placed his hands on his pectorals and began to rub them, "I fell as though I am alive again, but who knows," he then stopped, "Though if I were just in your mind, then perhaps you would already know what I am about to say," he looked over at Emiya, "Okay then, tell me what my next word will be."

"...Oxus."

"Frigidaire," Arash laughed, clapping his hands together, "I cannot tell you how magnificent cooling your food to keep it longer is. One of the great pleasures I found in Chaldea," he then cupped his chin, "Well then, I don't think I am just a figment of your imagination," then pointed at Emiya, "So perhaps that girl Hakuno brought me to meet with you for some reason."

"Know anything about her," when Arash just shook his head, Emiya could only groan, "Damnit, why do I always get myself caught up with exceedingly powerful and exceedingly headstrong teenage girls," Arash shrugged, "I'd say it's god's punishment for me, but I already know what that is," Arash then pointed at Emiya, his smile growing annoying. Emiya sighed, before finally asking, "What is it you figured out?"

"I know why we are meeting," he said, "For some reason, that girl wants me to help you," he then fell onto his ass fully, "So, my friend, tell me what is it that is troubling you? While I am flattered to be considered a close friend, I doubt it is merely another of my deaths."

"I'm troubled," Emiya just couldn't take it any longer, "I'm troubled," he looked out, "I'm troubled because I'm such a failure, and everything I try to do only results in people I know getting hurt," he looked over at Arash, "No matter what you say, I had a hand in your death," Arash was about to shake his head, but Emiya shot out quickly, "I could have knocked you out or-"

"And I would have never forgiven you."

"Better that than dead," Emiya groaned, before placing his hands up over his eyes, "But not just you. It started when I was that fool. I…I found out my friend was being abused by her older brother," Arash nodded seriously at that. Emiya held up his arm, "I saw bruises all up along her arm, and she always tried to deflect it, but I found out anyway," he then groaned, "And then, I went and tried to confront her brother to make him stop."

"A noble effort," Arash pointed at him, "I would expect nothing less from you."

"Wish you would," Arash raised an eyebrow, "I couldn't do anything, and acting that way only got her beaten worse the next time," before Arash could ask, he added, "I didn't go to the police, and even if I did it wouldn't have likely helped, considering her family's influence," he looked down, "I knew all that before I went off half cocked, and because of that I only made things worse," he sighed, "And that just became the pattern. I tried to help win the Holy Grail War, but I couldn't get Artoria over the line. I tried to help Luvia with her politics, and it only blew up in her face. I tried to stop a nuclear meltdown, and well," he waved his hand over his face, "You've seen the result of that."

"And," Emiya sighed, "I really thought I'd gotten past that. I thought I'd grown past it, after the wars I've lost as a servant. After the atrocities I've committed. Everything seemed to be going so well in Chaldea. I thought I was helping people-"

"I can certainly tell you Boudica appreciates you," Arash spoke up. Emiya gave him a sideways glance, before Arash continued, "That woman needed someone to confide in after her tragedies, and you served admirably," he then shrugged, "Your mother, your sister, Herakles, Cu," Emiya didn't comment on Arash skipping his "Father", "Mashu, Serenity, Atalante, the girls, Mordred, myself, David," he then sighed, "and of course, your King of Knights," Emiya must have flinched, "I thought that would be the problem."

"It's not just," Emiya stopped, composed himself, and then said, "I only really helped because Ritsuka was there to keep me from going too far and hurting all of them with my pig headed stupidity," Arash clearly didn't believe him, but he kept going, "Once I got on this plane, it's been one failure after another. I'm such a failure that I got you killed," Arash was about to speak up, when Emiya said, "And before you say it, I know it's your choice, I just think it was the wrong one," Arash stopped, and nodded, "And because of my fuck up, Ritsuka had to come down to take over, despite the fact that he still clearly should be kept in bed to recover from nearly being killed."

"Did he say this?" Arash asked.

"You know he wouldn't," Emiya responded. Before Arash could confront him, Emiya continued, "And then he nearly gets himself killed trying to pull out a rescue mission," he leaned back, "And I managed to be the one that saved him-"

"See, you ar-"

"And I only did so by mentally connecting with Artoria and using Avalon," Arash blinked, "So…I got to feel what she feels. She…she loves her family Arash, the one she made here," he looked over, "And yeah, before you ask, I am jealous of the lucky bastard who she married," he then shook his head, "But I know…I know what she feels about her family, and I know, that by the end of all this, we are going to take her from that."

"And you worry she will try and fight it."

"No," Emiya shook his head, "I know the moment she wakes up, she'll give up her family for Chaldea," Arash looked surprised, "And that's what terrifies me."

"Artoria…Artoria is the greatest person to have ever lived," he wasn't sure if Arash was the person he should be explaining this to, but he was here, so, "She has been given so many responsibilities, so many duties, so many tragedies, and she continues to fight through them," he focused on the fire, "The world has been very cruel to her, and yet, she still fights for it," he gripped his hand tightly, "She still tries, god damnit. That's all she's ever done, and sometimes she succeeds, but still, even when she doesn't, she tries. Whenever she's asked to do something, to do the right thing, she will try."

"And she'll know, in her heart of hearts, that the "right" thing is for her to come back to Chaldea," and finally, Arash nodded, "The moment she even gets an inkling of what she is she's going to become the King of Knights, and she'll leave her family behind," he could feel himself tear up, "She'll come back with us without a complaint, even though it's going to mean she's going to have to rip out her own heart to do it."

"So that is why you are still somehow stuck on me," Arash rubbed his chin, "You see my sacrifice, and compare it to what Artoria will do," when Emiya raised his hand to protest, Arash cut him off, "I know you do not mean any offense. If anything, it helps me understand you better," he then leaned back, and said, "I did not have a great romance in my legend, and whatever wife I had," he waved his fingers, "The Throne did not find it necessary to record it in my mind."

"Stupid chair."

"It can be," Arash nodded, "But," he raised a finger, "I can tell you, that if what you say is true, then Artoria and my situations are very different," Emiya paused, and looked up at Arash, "You say that Artoria loves her family, yes?" Emiya nodded, "Then, if she loves them, truly loves them, then her choosing to return to Chaldea is not the same as I using Stella," he pointed at himself, "I never had any regrets about allowing myself to die in that manner," he then pointed at Emiya, "But Artoria will have nothing but regrets. She will insist her sacrifice is worth it, but it will devour her."
"But she'll let it happen."

"If you allow it, my friend," It was only now that Emiya realized smoke was beginning to surround them, "You must be willing to be her advocate. You were inside her mind, shared her feelings. She needs someone with that knowledge and that care to make sure she does not make a decision that will only be a detriment to her."

"How is that any different than what I did with Sakura?" he asked with exasperation, "I am just getting involved in a situation she'd tell me was none of my business, and I might just make her hurt worse."

"Perhaps," Arash nodded, "Though I must ask, did you have an empathic link with Sakura telling you she wished for you to come and rescue her like a bright young hero?" Emiya stared, before giving him a look, getting the Persian to laugh, "Of course not. You have better insight into her state of mind and soul than anyone else, and you owe it to yourself and her to ensure that she has someone willing to fight for the family she loves, even if it means fighting Artoria herself."

"...I think you are being foolish," Emiya grumbled, which only got a laugh from his fellow archer. He looked, and saw that the smoke was beginning to cover the both of them, "I need to thank you," Emiya said, "For coming from wherever you happened to be now, just to talk to me," he sighed, "I'm not sure I agree with everything you said…but I do feel like…maybe this won't be a complete disaster."

"It was my pleasure, my friend," the smoke had fully enveloped him. A second later he was gone, and in his place, stood the girl who'd sent him here. Part of him knew he should be infuriated with her…but at the moment, he could only chuckle and shake his head.

"Ready to go?" Hakuno asked, raising her hand up, fingers bunched together.

"Yeah," Emiya nodded, "I'm ready."

SNAP

'Ah,' Emiya thought, as he felt his back lay against the cold dead stone, 'Aches and pains, how I didn't miss you.'

He blinked twice, and began to take in the world around him. It was, like every other place in this cursed temple, a stone room with no windows, or any other way to take in some kind of natural light. The high vaulted ceiling though told him at least this one was above ground, as this was likely the dome above the island he'd first entered.

But it wasn't even torches providing Emiya the light to see what was going on. Rather, it was a luminescence of dozens upon dozens of runes, which covered the ground around him. He only barely moved his head, and looked along the walls. There stood dozens of cloaked figures, more Faceless Men, all seeming to chant, with long strands of runes coming from beneath their feet into the middle of the room. Where he was.

'Okay,' Emiya considered, 'he groaned, at least I can see the runes,' he began to move his eyes around. He subtly adjusted his shoulders, and cursed, as he could barely get even his shoulder blades to move slightly, 'Damnit, I can't move my body,' he strained to turn his head, 'and I can barely look around,' he closed his eyes, and then looked above his head, 'and even if I could,' there was a cloaked figure standing above his head, a long knife in his hand, 'and I doubt that this asshole would let me move if I could.'

"By death's door," he was speaking slowly, in an archaic version of the Valyrian Language, "WE call the lo-"

'Luckily,' Emiya thought, looking about, 'He's too busy with his spell to see I'm awake,' he then sighed, and tried to manipulate his mana along his circuits. There was a slight burning sensation, particularly along his finger tips, but he felt the circuits crackle, 'Okay, at least those are working,' he looked around, 'now, how do I handle this with only some magecraft that I can't actually use to make a weapon,' he then stopped, 'Okay, might need to get some practice in subtle projection.'

He let his eyes scan the luminescent symbols. They originated from the different figures along the wall, and seemed to snake and web their way up towards where he was laying. As they snuck forward, he was able to see their individual characteristics better. They were small, each with their intricacies. But, as they got closer, he was able to tell them apart more easily.

Which was probably very good, because the man behind him was beginning to move up his cadence of speech. With the faster speed of the chant, and with more and more magic seeming to descend down upon him. A small swirling wind began to encircle him, causing the great cloak to flutter. The summoning ritual seemed to be moving on faster than he'd hoped. Still, he calmed himself, as the cloaked man continued, "The blood shall boil, leaving not but skull and bone-"

'Okay, okay,' Emiya kept scanning, the wind continuing to pick up, before finally, on only the last circle of the runes around him, still not lit up, he saw the familiar shape of an infinity symbol cut into equal parts by a cross. Emiya gave one last glance to the ritual leader, before slowly pushing some of his mana into his finger tips, 'I need to hit this perfectly,' any other way, and perhaps someone would notice, and perhaps pause the ritual enough to fix. He needed to change the rune at the right moment…

"Now Fill, fill, fill-"

'There we go,' he forced the mana to the tip of his fingers. He'd only have one shot at this, so he needed to do it perfectly. He arranged the mana right above his fingers, and slowly arranged it so the angle was pointing towards the rune. He then took in a deep breath, and waited-

"From the Seve-"

"BY THE BONE OF MY SWORD!"

It was all he needed. In a flash the akinakes shot out from where he had arranged his mana. It shot out in an instant, so much so that he doubted that anyone could have even told it was him that had done it. Just as he expected, Arash's dagger had cut directly into the symbol, bisecting it, and causing a leakage of visible managed from the floor where it had been. The chant above him paused, before the cloaked figure stopped, and looked down toward him.

"What did yo-"

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM

Emiya was thrown into the air. He wanted to say it hadn't hurt when he landed on the stone floor. But considering he fell face first into granite, he really should have been glad that it likely was only a bruised nose he probably got. His eyes spun for a bit, though he doubted he could have seen anything, as the dust from the explosion had covered the whole of the room, with small shots of lighting like mana bussing through along the air. Emiya sighed, but pulled his hand up slightly, and felt around himself.

'Well, I'm still in one piece,' he thought, before sighing in relief, 'So that's good,' he turned his head, and felt blood flowing out his nose. He coughed, but kept his eyes open. Finally, the dust began to settle, and there was a figure standing on the third or so of the big block left.

The figure was tall, as tall as anyone he'd seen on this plane. It was also pointier than anyone not named Grazdan, and that was without the benefit of metal feathers sticking from his back. Rather, there were large, pointed spikes sticking out of the figure's pauldrons and helmet. For the body was completely armored, from the top of the head down to the tip of the toe, with a long flowing black cloak along its back. But Emiya knew…

He knew the man with the skull mask.

For a moment, the Grand Assasin just stood there, staring out into the room around him. Then the old man of the mountain brought his hands together, and Emiya saw the massive sword held beneath it, the point of the blade directly cutting into the stone beneath him. Small blue lights flicked around inside the black holes of the skull mask, slowly taking in the great vaulted room.

"Yes," the cloaked figure that had been right above him said, "You…oh many-faced god," he raised his hands into the air, "We thank you for gracing us with you-"

SHUNK-THUNK-THUD-BUMP-BUMP-BUMP

Emiya winced, as he watched as the head of the man land only a few feet away from where he was laying, rolling down a set of stairs, to land directly next to him. As the seconds passed, he saw the face of the man suddenly seem…to come unglued from the head. As the face slowly peeled off, Emiya realized that this was the Faceless Man who he'd met before. He would have chuckled about this, this man had mentioned that Emiya should have cut off his head, but he decided laying here was probably for the best. Emiya held his head down, doing his best not to move.

He knew that sometimes the best way to survive was to play dead.

"What?" he heard from one of the figures in the robes along the wall, "What just," it sounded like there was no real comprehension, "You should not have-"

SHUNK

And Emiya closed his ears to the world, as a great slaughter began. He calmly allowed himself to consider what had happened. Most likely, in hitting that rune from earlier, he had managed to break the control that the Faceless Men were supposed to have.

SHUNKSHUNKSHUNK

But then, why did he not die. He was a sacrifice, wasn't he…unless-

SHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNK

-unless the sacrifice was maybe to have the servant take his mana or something, to make him a permanent fixture on this plane. Having him kill him and absorb the mana. Causing the explosion may have interrupted the ritual too early for him to die. That might be it-

SHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNSKSKSHSUKSNKSN

-Though it might also be that Emiya was meant to power some kind of command seal? They certainly seemed to think they would have a way to control Hassan, and-

SHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNKSHUNK

They clearly did not at this moment considering how many heads were being removed from shoulders. Though…he didn't know. Hell most of the time these sorts of spells didn't need something like a sacrifice. Why would a summoning spell require him? Was there something special about his magi-

"GAH!" he shouted, as he felt a great pain in his side. He was rolled to his back, and stared up to the great vaulted ceiling. Then, a skulled face leaned over his, and stared down at him. Emiya felt a cold sweat come over his body, as he stared directly into the eyes of King Hassan, founder of the order of assassins, Grand Assassin, and the servant who terrified him most on a merely "Can this guy kill me" scale.

Emiya had…issues from the whole Camelot singularity.

"The bell has not yet tolled for thee," the giant of a man reached down, and grabbed Emiya by his shirt. Slowly, he lifted Emiya to his feet, and stood him up straight, "Your death shall not be on this day, Archer Emiya Shirou," Emiya had to almost bite his tongue at the use of that name, "Now, come with me, there are still matters that must be completed before my time on this plane is at an end."

Emiya, standing straight, immediately bowed his head as low as he could. He then raised it up, hoping beyond hope that the tall man wouldn't take offense from the lack of complete deference. Hassan stared at him for a moment, before nodding, and beginning to walk towards what looked like a set of very large doors. One that was white, and one that was black.

'I wonder,' Emiya thought, 'If maybe Hakun-

"If Hakuno wanted King Hassan to be summoned," he didn't dare turn back, but her voice sounded like it was a few feet behind him, "You say you are different than my dear Nanashi, but at times you still have his habit of being slow on catching on to certain details."

'I…thank you,' he thought, hoping that this was a telepathic thing, 'Thank you for talking me off the edge…and for letting me see Arash again,' he couldn't help but smirk, 'So…what, are you an angel or something, because brining back a dead man must have been pretty hard.'

"Oh, not an angel," Hakuno's voice was almost a laugh, "Don't think I've ever met one of those, but I'm pretty sure they do exist out there," Emiya almost coughed. That…had implications…that he wasn't quite sure to know what to do with now, "Also, don't think this is over, you and I are going to have to talk some more about your self-loathing. It's very destructive."

'We can,' Emiya nodded. He then felt Hakuno's presence dissipate. He sighed, and forced his leg, creaking and tight, forward, until he felt something hit his foot. He looked down, and saw the head of his Faceless man roll a bit, the slab of flesh that was his fake face nearly completely fall off. He stopped, looked down at it, and considered. He then, with his body still shooting with pain, reached down, and picked it up.

'Works with Projection huh?' he asked himself. It was probably from the same theory he had used to change the color of his cloak, and to cover up that tarp back in Volantis. He felt the fleshy thing for a moment, weighing that this had once been the face of a living person…and then stuffed it in his pocket, 'Never know when it might be convenient to change my appearance completely.'

"Come now."

"Yes King," Emiya pushed his body as fast as it would allow him to push it. Soon, he was standing in front of the two colored doors. He looked over at Hassan. A second later, Hasan placed his sword up on his shoulder. Then he took the handle by both hands, and cut diagonally.

A moment after that, the doors split, and the top halves began to groan. The Grand Assassin then reached out his hand, and tapped the upper part of the white door. This caused that part to fall forward, followed soon by the other white part, then both the parts of the black door together. Emiya almost felt the need to whistle, but he still wasn't sure if that would be something Hassan would approve of, so he kept his mouth closed as Hassan walked forward, stepping on the pieces of door. Emiya, seeing that, did his best to follow.

Outside, it seemed like half the horizon was on fire. To the North and West, it seemed like their were fires lighting up along the harbors, more to the north than to the west though. He could vaguely hear screaming. Out in the distance, he could also see dark clouds gathering, almost as though they were about to surround the great Titan of Braavos. He could even hear thunder coming from near there, and could only wonder what was going on.

"We," Emiya tried to get his circuit up and running. Somehow, the food he had had with Arash had given him more mana, but right now he doubted he could even push his body to jump across the small canal back to the main islands, "I am going to need you to help me get over there," Hassan did not seem to move an inch from where he was staying, "We need to find my Master," Hassan still did not move, "He is here now, and he may be our best chan-"

"No need to go chasing him," Hassan pointed one armored finger directly toward the horizon, "When he is already on his way."

"What are you-"

And then, there was a great woosh, as suddenly four figures stood there. Emiya blinked, as all four of them were very familiar, but only three of them should be here. Ritsuka, Nitocris and Colan were shaking slightly, with the latter two now staring up in awe at the King of Assassians next to him. Ritsuka was looking at Emiya, and he could see the younger man sigh, before pulling up a full smile. The strangest one, however, was the familiar form of Musashi, who simply waved her hand to her side as she stared at them.

"Yo Emiya," she said, "How ya doing?"

"I've been trapped in a temple of insane death cultists for three days," he said aloud, and that caused Ritsuka's smile to fall a bit, and Emiya could swear he saw some sweat developing on the side of his head, "Though, considering what's going on out here…"

"Everyone's been busy," Ritsuka choked out a laugh, all the while rubbing the back of his head. He then stopped, sighed, and then raised his hand, and added, "Sorry about taking so long Emiya. I knew you were here, but it seemed impregnable, and with Nitocris being kidnapped, I kind of thought you both were taken together instead of looking here," Emiya could only sigh. Nitocris being captured for that time did explain why he'd not received any backup.

"It happens."

"You are very tall ser," Emiya turned his head to Colan, and wildly shook it. Immediately, the boy grabbed his hands around his face, and then took a step back. Emiya looked up…and nearly sighed in relief as the mighty Hassan only nodded at that.

"Hey King Hassan," Ritsuka's voice did get the giant to look over at him, "Is…um…is this the time where you take my head or-"

"I do have business on this plane, Ritsuka Fujimaru," the First Hassan said, staring out toward the storm, the constant cracks of thunder still booming over the sea, "But I can assure you once more that it is not your head that I shall be taking this day."

"I thank you for your generosity."

"Tis not generosity," the old man said, "It is simply fact."
The other servants coughed, and looked away. Emiya hoped against hope that it would never be Ritsuka's day to have his head removed. His own head might one day leave his shoulders, but there was part of him that would fight tooth and nail even against the might Grand Assassin to make sure the Ritsuka Fujirmaru would survive another day.

"So," Ritsuka clapped his hand together, "Drake's pirates turned on her, killed all her crew, and are commanded by that axe wielding girl's uncle, who kidnapped her. They are now burning the north harbor and are staring to attack the second. We managed to stop that Mairu guy again, and we ran into that copy of you-," he stopped, and looked at Hassan, "Don't suppose you are here to kill a guy who looks just like Emiya, except he's got wei-"

"That thing is not my target."

"Thank you for letting me know," Ritsuka let the quickness of the response slide, and then turned back to Emiya, "He took care of that other mage while trying to control Nitocris. We stopped him, and now we are planning to go and see what we can about that big storm over there."

"I guess that makes sense," Emiya nodded, "With all the magecraft flying about, I wouldn't be surprised if there is another type of ritual being completed," he paused, "Certainly kidnapping a close relative is never a good sign," he cringed as he felt his body still ache, "Though really, I'm not sure how much help I'll be. They did a number on me back there," he looked over again at the great clouds, "And consider who loud that thunder is."

"Oh," Ritsuka was smiling, "That's not thunder."